This invention relates to an enzyme composition for increasing secretion of milk of livestock and improving quality of the milk.
Nutritive value of milk of livestock, especially cows, is highly estimated, and the milk of cows is a livestock product widely utilized as raw materials for processed dairy products such as powdered milk, butter, cheese, etc., or as a beverage, and holds a very important position in the modern food life.
In the production of milk of livestock, various attempts have been so far made to increase the amount of secretion of milk and to improve the qualities of milk from the standpoints of genetics, livestock nutrition science and veterinary science. However, it is still a great task for livestock breeders and manufacturers of dairy products to further increase the amount of secretion of milk of livestock and to improve the quality of the milk.
As a result of studies on a process for improving the production of milk of livestock, the present inventors have found that by giving livestock an enzyme composition obtained by culturing Basidiomycetes belonging to the genus Irpex, the secretion of milk of livestock is promoted and the quality of the milk is improved, and thus have completed the present invention.
It is known that said enzyme composition has the activities of cellulase, laminarinase, xylanase, pectinase, dextranase, amylase and protease.
In the livestock industry, it is widely adopted to feed enzymes to single-stomach animals such as pigs, hens, horses, etc. to improve the feed efficiency, promote the digestion, etc. Also in the dairy farming, it is known to use enzymes in the production of dairy products. However, no attempt has so far been made to give enzymes to livestock to increase the amount of secretion of milk and to improve the quality of the milk as in the present invention. That is, such an attempt has been made for the first time by the present inventors.